DIYbanter - View Single Post - Lead in 50 year-old plumbing solder?

wrote:

1) Did plumbing solder in 1953 contain lead?
2) Can I test some of the solder blobs easily?
3) Should I consider replacing all of the pipes in my house? (Note: I
have a small ranch house with easy access to all of the plumbing; this
would not be a difficult job for me.)

Mike

My house built in 1983 had lead in the plumbing, subjecting us to being
a bunch of "lab rats " for the local water district and health
department.

Very very well-versed in the subject. Essentially, what most everyone
has told you is true.

You test the water, not the solder. You test first "flush" -- meaning
the first dribbles of water out of the pipe and then let it run (forget
how long) and collect a second sample.

Over time, if you have hard water, the deposits USUALLY seal off the
lead and very little, if any, escapes into the actual water. Soft
water, well another story. If I remember correctly, hot water taps pose
more of a problem.

Finally, another poster was close, but, sort of deadly wrong when they
said flush a couple of toilets....Basically let the water run out of
any pipe -- the protocol says up to 10 minutes -- that you are going
to consume water from. Flushing a toilet is not going to drain the
water that has been sitting in that cold water line...

Hey, how about this, take a look at what the experts say :)

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/fcs/ho...bs/fcs395.html